The field of the disclosure relates generally to edible liquid food dispensing containers, and more particularly, to liquid food dispensing containers having at least two mutually insoluble liquids of different respective densities.
Many cooked edible food items (e.g., meat, fish, vegetables, etc.) are coated with a layer of edible fat or oil (e.g., butter, margarines, oils such as coconut, corn, olive, etc., collectively referred to herein as “butters”). However, most butters are in solid form at room temperature, and must be melted in order to butter the respective food items. The coating process using melted butters is therefore referred to herein as “buttering.” In some cases, uncooked edible food items are also buttered. The process of buttering the food items is typically inconvenient, time-consuming, and messy. Where large quantities of food are involved, and/or when a significant number of persons come into contact with the food (e.g., restaurants open to the public), additional numerous problems exist with respect to sanitary conditions, labor and time resources, cross-contamination of food products (which can be a particular concern where food allergies exist), and logistics. Such problems become significantly more pronounced where particularly large quantities food are subject to buttering for and/or by large number of people, such as occurs with county fairs, autumn corn harvests, public fish boils, “lobster fests,” etc.
Additionally, even in the case of relatively lower quantities of food and limited numbers of persons, the circumstances of the consuming the relevant food items can also make buttering difficult. For example, a picnic or similar outdoor activity typically will not allow consumers access to microwave or stove availability to melt the butters, which, even when pre-melted, often will re-solidify by the time the relevant meal commences. Solidified butters in a common container bill often be scooped by utensils of multiple persons, which utensils may have already been used for eating (a sanitary problem) or for scooping other food items (a cross-contamination or sanitary problem). It is fairly common, for example, for persons to share a solid stick of butter in order to butter corn on the cob, a process which is also time-consuming, particularly in the case of larger numbers of people. Additionally, it is also somewhat common for multiple people to share a community ball of melted butters for dipping individual pieces of meat, lobster, etc., with the same utensil that the individual persons use for eating the respective food item (sometimes referred to as “double dipping”, which can be unsanitary).
Some known solutions to the problems described above include methods of placing smaller quantities of butters on a serving dish or eating plate prior to potential contamination from other food items or individuals. This solution, however, is known to distribute the butters unevenly across the food item (e.g., an ear of corn), and also result in a significant amount of food waste of the unused/undistributed butters. To mitigate this problem, special dishes have been created to conform to the general shape of the food item, but this solution can be costly, difficult to reuse, and inconvenient to the consumers who are required to provide several different plates for each respective type of food item. Other known solutions include coating brushes, which may be effective to more evenly distribute the butters, but are nevertheless subject to the sanitary and cross-contamination problems noted above, particularly where a consumer desires one or more subsequent butterings of the food item during consumption.
Other known solutions include chafing dishes with a portable fuel source, but chafing dishes are often inconvenient for portability, and sometimes banned from outdoor activities. Chafing dishes are also known to use water in the heating process, but only in a separate container or pan from the butter to provide a lower boiling temperature that will prevent the butter from reaching its higher boiling point. Electric butter melters are also known, including some portable, battery-operated models, but these electric melted butters can also be expensive, and typically are effective only for one type of butter (i.e., margarine or actual butter), and may be difficult to clean for reuse, and are also known to have a limited lifespan of operation. Additionally, the electric butter melters often spray the respective melted butter at only one level of thickness, making the process time-consuming when the density of the spray is below, or over-buttering the food item if the spray density is high, making it difficult to adjust the amount of buttering to the consumers desired taste or for health concerns.
Additionally, for large events or venues, commercial-size butter melters are conventionally known, but these commercial-size devices are designed for only large-scale use. These devices are not generally portable, and are typically constructed from stainless steel and other heavy components.
Accordingly, it is desirable to provide a simple and inexpensive apparatus that conveniently melts butter, maintains the melted butters in their liquefied state, may be easily cleaned for reuse, and which allows a consumer to adjust the buttering level according to desired taste or health concerns. Additionally, it is also desirable to provide such a solution that is scalable for large buttering operations.